Ratchet and Clank:The Trilogy of Arcala
by Bolt Bucket
Summary: Ratchet and Clank are retiring to Veldin but they have no idea what s coming their way.
1. Somwhere

_Somewhere in some secluded place..._

A hooded man walked into an old chamber full of navigators and computers, he looked around and then shouted: "Cor...COR!" "Coming sir coming!" a tall teen with a screwdriver in his hand ran into the room..."Whoa, ahgggg!"...and tripped over a stack of tools.

The man in the hood facepalmed and waited for the boy to stand up, as soon as he was up the man asked impatiantly: "So? have you located him?" "Relax sir, relax i think i finally discovered his location."

The boy said proud and turned to the holo-map table. "This better work Cor, i´ve spent more than a month scouting all of Solana and if he´s not here then i don´t know what i´m going to do..."

The man sat down and covered his face. The teen sat down next to him and tried to comfort him, "Don´t worry sir...we´ll find him i promise."

In that exact moment a computer voice echoed through the room: "_Attention_ _target acquired, location: Veldin, Kyzil plateu._" The man´s eyes widened, a shred of hope could be seen in his eyes.

Cor stood up and shrieked of joy while the man ran to the exit,"Wait sir!" Cor managed to stop him before he left.

"I just wanted to say...congratulations!" "Thank´s Cor, it´s been a looong ride..." "Well i guess i should say good luck sir!" "Please sonny...call me Osmedus."


	2. On Veldin

Back on Veldin Ratchet was going through all of his stuff, ever since they came back from Bogon the junk just seemed to pile up.

Three months had passed since they defeated Nefarious in the Breegus system and stopped him from misusing the Great clock and destroying the universe, Clank sat on an old bench and let himself bake in the sun, he kept thinking how Sigmund was doing and if he was capable of taking care of the clock.

„Ughh...did i do the right thing?" he kept asking himself. Ratchet came out of the garrage with his fur full of dirt and oil stains, „Well, i just finished installing a set of heat seekers to Aphelion" he said proud. Clank sighed, „Good for you..."

„Is something wrong?" „It´s just i´m... suddenly feeling so...useless" „What are you talking about!, Clank without you i´d be nothing!" „Thank´s Ratchet" Clank smiled. „I just wish i could serve a purpose like the one i did at the clock" Ratchet´s ears drooped a bit, he walked into the garrage feeling guilty.

He wondered what would have happened had Clank stayed at the Great clock, „*sigh* oh well...it can´t get any more dull than thi-.

He had bareley finished speaking when a large thunderclap was heard outside. „That didn´t sound like an ordinary thunder..." Ratchet ran out and saw the sun was gone and the sky was full of clouds, but that wasn´t all, the ground surrounding Ratchet´s garrage had been burnt and scorched.

He looked for Clank but he couldn´t see him, the spot that he was lying on had been turned to ashes.

Ratchet feared the worst, after searching for a few minutes he found Clank lying in the muck. Someone had done this to him there was no other logical explaination, Ratchet took Clank to the garrage for a cup of hot oil.

After Clank recovered he told ratchet that he saw a vortex/wormhole of some sort and this portal unleashed a devastating thunderstorm that threw him into the pond.

„It was very confusing, it felt like a rollercoaster with alot of pain included" „Do you have any idea why?" „None" Clank answered simply. They both went to sleep afterwards thinking about this strange day, as they drifted to sleep Ratchet started to get the feeling they were being watched...


	3. The warning

Ratchet walked out of his garrage stretching his arms and yawning. A thunderstorm had kept him awake the entire night, it was five in the morning and he sat down to look at the stars.

He saw a shooting star fly by as he thought about the yesterday, the word „unusual" went through his mind as he pondered. Suddenly he felt a cold grip on his shoulder, he shouted in shock only to see that it was Clank that was behind him.

Clank snickered „Sorry i didn´t mean to frighten you" he said smiling. „Haha wise guy!" Ratchet was clearly ticked off, he often pretended not to care about being startled but it was impossible to hide it since his fur rised every time he was scared.

„Now what exactly are you doing the way out here in the middle of the night?" Clank was serious again. „I was just thinking..." Ratchet sat down again. „About what?" „I mean...what the heck happened last night?" He stared at Clank like he was hoping for an answer.

Clank looked at his feet and then again at Ratchet, „Ratchet...there is something i forgot to mention last night".

Ratchet´s ears perked, Clank opened his drive and took out what appeared to data disk.

„Right before the lightning came through the wormhole an infobot of some sort came out of it holding this datadisk in it´s hand, it didn´t say a word just gave me the disk and then went back in, there must have had been some sort of interference because the portal completeley shattered afterwards and turned into lethal energy!"

Clank handed Ratchet the disk, he examined the disk carefully before putting it in his pocket. „So..how come you didn´t tell me this sooner?" „I was pretty dazed after the shock and i guess i just forgot in the dissaray"

Ratchet nodded slowly and then looked back at the disk. „Well what are we waiting for?...let´s take a look at it!" Ratchet ran back to the garrage with Clank behind him. There were a few rooms in the garrage and one contained a decoder needed for the disk, Ratchet put the disk in the drive and waited for the device to do it´s job.

After about twenty minutes it finally finnished with the disk. „about time!" Ratchet said impatiantly.

The image lagged alot and it was almost impossible to see but if you looked closely could see a figure, Ratchet peered his eyes and saw the quality would not get any better than this.

All they could see was a blurry figure adjusting the camera, once done the person spoke: „He...hello...".

Ratchet could sense a hint of fear in his tone and he was shivering. „This me-message goes to Ratchet and Clank.., my na-na-name is Ethelius. Listen you are in grave danger!" Again the man took a moment to catch his breath.

„Look i´m being watched and i don´t have much time!" Suddenly scary screeches could be heard from behind him, the man gasped in fear.

„They´re after me! Those hideous monsters have found me!" He said literally quivering with fear.

„YOU MUST GO TO THE ARCALA GALAXY AND S-S-S-SEEK OUT MY M-M-MAST- „ The man couldn´t say more as some kind of creatures attacked him from behind and dragged him away following in the poor man´s horrafying screams and the camera falling down and interrupting the broadcast.

Clank´s jaw was lowered and so was Ratchet´s. „What happened to that guy?" Ratchet asked himself. „It would appear that this poor individual was sending us a warning"

Clank took a minute to collect his thoughts and then said „Arcala galaxy?" Clank looked at Ratchet. „Never heard of it..." He stood up and began pressing a few buttons on the decoder, data came bursting through and Ratchet had his hands full reading all of them.

Suddenly he gasped, „Is something wrong Ratchet?" A drop of sweat ran down Ratchet´s face. „Uh..Clank?" „Yes?" „This recording it´s..." Ratchet stammered. „What is it?" „It´s...50.000 years old!".


	4. Gangsters!

A trail of smoke was left behind as Aphelion flew through the cosmos, Ratchet looked to his left side and then to his right to face Clank.

"Don´t give me that look Ratchet" Ratchet rolled his eyes. "I just can´t belive that you talked me into this!" He said rashly and Clank crossed his arms.

"The person told us to find someone in Arcala before he was...eh-" "Horribly mutilated?" Ratchet filled in. "*sigh* In any case we just cannot ignore that message" Ratchet ears perked. "Will you listen to yourself!" He snapped.

"That tape was 50.000 years old! the guy that we´re looking for is probably DEAD!" Ratchet had barely finished talking whe suddenly the radar started blinking. "_Warning hostile targets inbound_" Ratchet peered his eyes.

"Any identifications?" "_Negative"_ Aphelion responded. Ratchet looked behind him and tried to get a good look at the ships chasing them. They were very classy and seemed exspensive, those were no pirates.

Suddenly something appeared on the screen, it was Blarg wearing a suit and with a metalized cigar between his gold filled teeth. "Well hello there boys mind if we lighten ya purse?" He said in a scrawny voice.

"You´ll have to catch me first!" Ratchet said imposingly. "Now listen you bag of fur! me and my boys have had some bad luck recently and i am not gonna let you slip away from me, now i´m giving you a choice either you stop now and we´ll spare you or keep going and we´ll blow you up and salvage your ship so what´s it gonna be?"

The gangster´s voice was completely different and Ratchet noticed he was blind in one eye. "Sorry buddy but i don´t respond to threats!" Ratchet said before speeding off, he could hear the gangster growl before he shut him off.

They began the chase anew this time on maximum speed and Clank was concerned that no matter how fast they went the thugs always kept up. They were very close now and their leader even closer, suddenly his picture appeared again.

"I warned ya Lombax, now you need to face the consequenses!" With a sudden blast the thug fired some sort of EMP at Aphelion wich completely deactivated her. Ratchet slipped a swear before the blast knocked him and Clank out.

Ratchet awoke with a major headache and finding himself tied up, he was in what looked like an abandoned office. The door opened and out came the Blarg, and his bodyguards, "Enjoying your stay Lombax?" He said teasingly. Ratchet growled quietly.

"You know..it appears you are more valuable then we thought..." He said crouching down to face him. "Okay, we can make this easy Lombax just tell us were the elder is and we won´t hurt ya!" Ratchet was surprised.

"How do you know about Azimuth?" The Blarg´s expression changed. "Who the hell is Azimuth! are you playing dumb?" He said and drew a knife from his belt and pointed it at him. "Tell us where Osmedus is NOW!" He shouted.

"I don´t know anyone named Osmedus!" Ratchet tried to convince him but the Blarg just got angrier. He lost his temper and brutally stepped on Ratchet´s tail, Ratchet wailed in pain and the Blarg grinned at his agony.

"Well well well it looks like somebody´s got a soft spot!" He chuckled, "Boys you know what to do" The two thugs nodded and dragged Ratchet out of the room and into a slightly bigger one, it was dark and had chains on the wall a stockade and other grim devices.

Ratchet was put in the stock and he saw one of the goons selecting a torture tool, Ratchet shivered in fear.

The thug picked up some sort of glove he went behind him and grabbed Ratchet´s tail tightly with the glove, with a quick move he gave it a powerful yank, it didn´t hurt as much as the stomp the Blarg had given him but it hurt nontheless.

For the next sixty minutes his tail was pulled harder and harder each time and there were time when he shed a tear or three in pain, he was tortured in many other ways as well such as electrocution and iron beatings, the thug suddenly stopped when he realized that Ratchet was probably going die if he continued.

He went into a room to talk with his boss and Ratchet barely managed to lift his ears to hear their conversation.

"I don´t care, you will continue until he talks!"

"But boss i´ve at this for an hour surely he´d be talking by now, perhaps he really dosen´t know"

"He has to know! the zealot told me he knew!"

"But isn´t he insane?"

Their talk stopped for a minute but it didn´t get a chance to restart because suddenly an exsplosion was heard right were the gangster and his goon were conversing, Ratchet could see them come flying out with their clothes tattered and their faces covered in ash.

A figure came out of the smoke that now filled the building, Ratchet couldn´t see it clearly until it came closer. Ratchet´s eyes widened, he looked like the Thugs-4-less lizards that he fought on Bogon but this one seemed much taller not to mention he was cyborg, practicly half his body was robotic.

"You Ratchet?" He said in a deep voice. "Y-yeah..." Ratchet coughed up. The cyborg released Ratchet from the stocks and carried him through the hole he had made, "Who..are you?" Ratchet whispered. The cyborg didn´t answer he just kept going, he carried Ratchet to a small dropship and placed him in the back. Ratchet saw Clank in there as well, he was unconscius and soon so was Ratchet. The cyborg mumbled something to himself: "I hope Osmedus knows what he´s doing!"


	5. Vath

Ratchet groaned as he tried to stand up but was too tired to move a muscle, he woke up a few minutes ago and was taking a look at his surroundings.

He was in a dropship of some sort and Clank lay next to him, his jaw was damaged and his right hand was missing. Ratchet had murderous thoughts on his mind, if he would ever come across those bastards again he´d make them wish they were never born.

Ratchet noticed someone in the cockpit and suddenly he remembered, it was the cyborg who rescued him. Ratchet didn´t know what to think of him, he saved him sure but he also abducted him just like that.

The cyborg seemed to notice Ratchet but he didn´t say a word, Ratchet heard a strange sound outside the ship. Suddenly something fired at it and Ratchet fell off the bench during the knockback, "Damn!" The cyborg shouted.

He landed the ship on a nearby moon and walked to the back where Ratchet was lying, "Get ready to fight for your life!" He said and amputated Ratchet with something. "What did you just do?" Ratchet didn´t get a response but he felt renewed.

Unusual ships landed a few metres away from them, they were colored purple and spikes stuck out of them, Ratchet had never seen ships like that.

The cockpits opened and Cragmites walked out, Ratchet´s eyes widened. Most of them wore hoods and cloaks while others had black tatoos or burn marks on their arms and foreheads, their weapons though was what caught Ratchet´s attention.., dirks, tridents , hammers, wristclaws and staffs.

Those were the kind of weapons that no ordinary being would normaly wield. They roared monstrously and charged at the ship, they were thirty at least and seemed completeley fearless.

Ratchet drew his wrench from his belt and the cyborg lit his inbuilt flame thrower, Ratchet was amazed at the things the cyborg was capable of, he held back more than half of the group with a flame thrower, a plasma shooter and an electric fist.

Ratchet managed to beat on a few of them that got past the cyborg and they got close enough for Ratchet to see their faces, Ratchet was a bit shocked if not terrafied at the Cragmites´s expressions.

Their eyes were blood red, the veins on their necks were very noticeble and drool leaked from their mouths, it´s like they were possesed. Ratchet had seen Cragmites and those were no ordinary ones.

One by one they fled and the ships started to pick themselves up from the moon and soon so did Ratchet and the cyborg. "So who are you exactly?" Ratchet asked. "Vath..Vath Anurous" He replied not looking away from the the control board.

"Where are we going?" "You´ll find out soon enough..." Ratchet was going to question him further but then he remembered: "Oh no Clank!" He said and ran to the back to his injured friend.

"You named him ´Clank´?" Vath chuckled. Ratchet growled back at him, "Alright i want some anwers here!..Where are we going?..tell me now!" Ratchet snapped. "Wow he was right you really DO need to learn some patience..." "And just who is this ´he´?" Ratchet asked. "Why don´t you ask ´him´ yourself?" Vath smirked.

An injured Cragmite limped through a dark hallway, it´s black blood trailing behind it. It came into an enormous room where another slightly bigger Cragmite stood mumbling something in meditation, "Erm..Highpriest?" The smaller Cragmite interrupted, the bigger one´s eyes opened and he turned around levitating.

The smaller Cragmite bowed before the other,"How did it go?...has he been executed?" The larger one said in a threatning voice. "Umm...eh..no..." The smaller wimpered. "I thought so..." He grabbed the smaller on by the neck and started choking him.

"Wait please...i can fix this! *cough*" "No...the master does not forgive failures!" And so the last gasp of air was squeezed from the smaller one´s throat and his corpse was thrown to the ground. The Highpriest went back to his medication and started to mumble again, "Soon my lord...soon.."


End file.
